Taiwan Railways Shunting Accidents: 76 cases in 6 years, mostly human error; TSB: Significantly High

The Legislative Yuan's Transportation Committee today invited the Chairperson of the National Transportation Safety Board (TSB), Lin Hsin-te, to present an overview of its operations and answer questions. KMT legislator Hung Meng-kai questioned today, stating that Taiwan Railways (TRA) shunting accidents were 14 cases in 2022 and 16 in 2023. Since corporatization in 2024, the number of shunting accidents has not decreased, with 20 cases in both 2024 and 2025, and some resulting in casualties. Lin Hsin-te pointed out that TRA shunting accidents are indeed high. Since the TSB was established in August 2019, a total of 76 shunting accidents have occurred, with human factors being the primary cause. The top three accident types are derailment (28 cases), switch fouling (26 cases), and collision (13 cases). The most frequent locations are Qidu marshalling yard, followed by Hualien Locomotive Depot. Hung Meng-kai questioned whether the frequent accidents at these two locations are related to insufficient training or staff shortages. He noted that TRA always responds by saying they will continue to work hard and improve, but if more staff are truly needed, they should be hired. If training hours are insufficient, they should be increased. "They can't always say they are short-staffed, and then the frontline staff suffer." DPP legislator Li Kun-tse pointed out that from January to March this year, five shunting accidents have already occurred, indicating that current track safety causes significant concern for passengers. He believes that investigation should focus on aspects such as shunting routes, operational procedures for setting personnel, guidance for shunting personnel, work division regulations for communication methods, and maintenance management of station signals. The TSB stated that it has initiated investigations into five shunting accidents. The causes are mainly divided into two aspects: first, human operation, including work allocation and coordination of shunting personnel, and the adherence to Standard Operating Procedures (SOP); second, equipment maintenance issues. The TSB noted that the collision incident involving a diesel locomotive and a cement freight train at Hualien County's Hwaryen Station in March, which resulted in a derailment, and the collision of two EMU900 commuter trains at Qidu marshalling yard, also leading to derailment, have been consolidated for investigation. The investigation will conduct an in-depth analysis of human resource utilization, training, and personnel adherence to SOP, with the factual data report expected to be released as early as September.